This has got to be in my top ten ambient releases. Stunning, dark atmospheric soundscapes of the North. Inspired by Spitsbergen and Greenland. Nice package also with some great landscapes of these remote lands.

Margins - Fragile ExistenceThis is a late 2013 collaborative project between Dan Crossley (Facture/Fluid Audio) and Craig Tattersall (The Boats). Once again, this is an amazing product from Facture in which the packaging/art is as central to the release as the music. The music itself is decent, but not remarkable. It largely combines field recordings and tape loops to create a fractured but ambient atmosphere. The Crossley nature prints that accompany the release are absolutely beautiful, however, and are worth checking out on the Fluid Audio site regardless of how you feel about Tattersall.

Chris,

Saw this release pop up on the Fluid Audio list again, so I thought I'd give it a go.

Forrest: I hope you enjoy Fragile Existence. Musically, I think the last two tracks (Brook and Wood) are the highlights of the release. But the photos are what make the experience a true treat.

Recent spins:Wintersilence - Submental Vol. 2 Excellent drone work with great depth from the El Culto label. This is encoded as one 55 minute track, but there are clearly discrete tracks on here that morph into one another in the smooth ways that I'm accustomed to in some of Tomas' work. I'm not exactly sure who Wintersilence is, but drone on suggested that Grassow is involved and Discogs corroborates that possibility. Samples/Buy: http://www.el-culto.com/artists/submental/vol2wintersilence.html

Nik Tyndall--Plejaden Suite, Trance Dance. A couple of his early albums around the time of his Hearts of Space release called Lagoon. Sort of melodic and new agey, but although still very nice atmospheric music. My only criticism of his music is it sounds like all digital synths with preset sounds.

Bernd Kistenmacher--Totally Versmold. This is basically live versions of his Thoughts album, which I didn't have so very worthwhile.

non-ambient:Elbow - The Take Off And Landing Of Everything - haven't really listened to this yet as I just pre-ordered it today but got the immediate download. First time through sounds excellent.St Vincent - St Vincent - Excellent! But then I have a thing for Annie Clark.

Porya Hatami - ShallowNew release from the Tench label. I'm a sucker for this kind of stuff: electro-acoustic looping and noodling with a mixture of field recordings, clicks, and pops. The sounds feel as if they are bubbling up to the surface. Joe R--this is a great followup to Land and quite similar in style. Porya also seems to have a lot of new releases lined up across the world, including new collaborations with Lee Anthony Norris on Carpe Sonum and ...txt.

Thanks for the tip on that new Porya Hatami, Chris. Unstable is good as well, you can pick that up on Bandcamp.

Meanwhile, I took Dave Michuda's tip and downloaded Optical Frameworks- Vibrant. I love this stuff. It's a very diffuse, distant-sounding recording. Listening through headphones, I get that same vague sense of aching distance that I get when I stand in a empty field at twilight, all alone. Beautiful and peaceful and still, yet so isolated...

Hi, Joe. I streamed Unstable earlier today. You're right--great stuff. I might have to place an order for it. Also gave Optical Frameworks a listen. Good stuff too.

thirdsystem: I gave Northaunt a listen too. It freaked me out a bit--in a way I can appreciate. Nice find.

Now playing:M. Ostermeier - The Rules of Another Small WorldFrom the curator of Tench Records. Very similar in spirit to the Porya Hatami release from the same label. One part piano, one part electronics, one part found sounds, and one part dusty processing. This is a really neat CD. And the cover art is crazy compelling. Samples/Buy: http://www.tenchrec.com/TCH04.html

I encourage everyone who hasn't heard One Thousand Dreams to take a listen to the samples. But the music is subtle, so it won't grab you by the throat at the first listen. The music is deep and complex, and reveals itself layer by layer- kind of like peeling an onion down to it's core. You will be rewarded when you take the time to listen and assimilate the sounds. A great, great disc, but unfortunately it took me a few years to appreciate it's brilliance.

up to the point that his student completed it after his death. I don't know if 'knowing' that Mozart didn't finish the music made me listen differently, but the last parts did feel unlike the earlier parts, perhaps more bombastic than he would have written.

up to the point that his student completed it after his death. I don't know if 'knowing' that Mozart didn't finish the music made me listen differently, but the last parts did feel unlike the earlier parts, perhaps more bombastic than he would have written.

but who knows, I could be imagining it.

Hi Seren,I wasn't a huge fan of the Requiem when I first heard a portion of it, but enjoyed it more after I heard Colin Davis' rendition of it. For me, the recording really captures the visceral essence of the piece as a last testament.